From gripping dramas and powerful documentaries to fresh new voices shaping Irish cinema, the 2026 Irish Film Festival is underway around Australia with its biggest Australian program ever.
Screening across five cities and online nationwide, this year’s festival showcases 18 films and documentaries, including 13 Australian premieres, alongside a vibrant program of short films.
Screening until November 15, the festival offers audiences a window into contemporary Ireland, celebrating the stories, people and places that continue to shape the country’s distinctive cinematic voice.
Highlights of the Irish Film Festival
2026 program highlights include the Australian premiere of Chasing Millions, Galway Film Fleadh award winners Trad, Horseshoe and Girls & Boys, and IFTA nominees Báite (The Drowned), Fréwaka (Roots) and Testimony.
Festival Director Dr Enda Murray says a new generation of Irish musicians are smashing out tunes in Trad while Declan O’Rourke’s sublime music forms the basis of Almost With You.
“There are laughs galore in Chasing Millions but we also deep dive into our recent tragic history with Testimony. Manchán Magan brings some ancient wisdom to the party with his spell-binding Listen to the Land Speak and the Irish language continues its rebirth of cool with Báite (The Drowned) and the folk-horror hit Fréwaka (Roots).”
Five of the films are in the Irish language. For the first time in the festival’s history, an official Irish/Australian feature co-production will open the festival. The darkly funny, fast-moving comedy, Chasing Millions, has its Australian premiere on the festival’s opening night.
Throwing an Australian spotlight on the infamous 2004 Northern Bank heist in Belfast, the film’s lead character, Diana, an Australian policewoman with Aboriginal / Irish heritage, becomes mixed up in the investigation into the audacious heist while trying to track down her Irish family in Belfast.
The film’s Australian star, Madeleine Madden (grand-daughter of civil rights activist Charlie Perkins) is of Aboriginal and Irish heritage, and the soundtrack was written by Australian rock and folk legend, Jim Moginie (Midnight Oil).
The Irish Embassy in Canberra will mark the 80th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Australia by presenting Chasing Millions at the opening night of the Canberra season on Friday, November 6.
To see the full program and to purchase tickets, visit www.irishfilmfestival.com.au
Keep an eye out for our upcoming review of festival highlights.
